Top 10 Saddest Film Scores

I see that a copyright discrepancy has lead to my Youtube video being muted. Oh well, I’d say it was “fair use” but oh well.

Since I put these videos up so people can hear the clips and hopefully listen to the entire OST, I’ll post a brief description of each song (I don’t know the order I used and didn’t feel like watching the video completely– so it’s in the order I gave in the credits).

Big Fish: Big Fish is a score by Danny Elfman which combines Americana/country style-strings and percussion with ethereal vibraphones and other synthesized sounds. The music is not very heavy on melody and motifs, the score is verymuch a true underscore: it creates a magical yet somber environment. Song pick: “Underwater”

The Corpse Bride: Another Elfman score, The Corpse Bride is very musical. The main theme is a bittersweet (and very beautiful) melody which serves as a strong motif throughout the score. Like Elfman’s scores, it uses fluttering winds and steady string modulations to create a nother-wordly background with the ’sad’ melody played out by piano/glockenspiel. Song Pick: “End Credits”

Edward Scissorhands: The last Elfman score, I put this at number one. The entire score is playful and fairy tale like, making heavy use of harps and bells, and uses an Elfman-style minor chord progression to turn it into a very morose fairytale..Song Pick: “Grande Finale”

Gladiator: This score has very intense, Pirates of the Caribbean-esque moments. But the beautiful and haunting songs which outline the tragedy of the hero’s past as well as the vigorously emotional score which serves as the climax at the debacle between Commodus and Lucilla make this score quite sad and quite deserving of mention. Song Pick: “Progeny” & “Am I Not Merciful?”

The Ring: The Ring is another Hans Zimmer score (the other being Gladiator). It’s music is ominous and creepy, in the Bernard Hermann sense, and has an overall feeling of relentless despair. Song Pick: “The Ferry”

Lord of the Rings: Particularly in the Two Towers, the entire score has moments of grandeur as well as those of darkness. Howard Shore makes use of tremolo strings to ignite fear and anxiety, and also powerful moments of horror. Song Pick: “A Storm is Coming” & “Gollum’s Song”

Passion of the Christ: Debny’s POTC score is quite analytically similar to Gladiator, but the music has a much different tone color. Still, cacophonous percussion on top of deeply anguished chords in strings and woodwinds and Arab-esque vocals (like “Am I Not Merciful”) create powerfully emotive scenes, and others which underscore evil or deplorable deeds are played by an eerie oboe and murmuring background music. Song Pick: “Resurrection”

The Godfather: The Godfather’s classic score, by Nino Rota, is not typical of the other’s on this list. Because the main “sad” songs are not very cinematic, they are very structured and typical of the era. The sorrowful yet infamous “Godfather” theme is repeated many times throughout the films’ scores and is often used quite skillfully to embellish the sadness of dramatic scenes. Song Pick: “End Credits (Godfather Theme)”

Current Obsession: Howie Michael Smith

Howie with Princeton

Last Saturday I went to see Avenue Q for my first time. To be honest, I was worried I would be the stick in the mud of the audience who didn’t think it was that funny and lamented the absence of what my elitist self calls “musical sustenance”– which I had thought could only be provided by megamusicals like Phantom, Les Mis, Rent, and so on.

Boy, was I wrong.

In fact, from the moment that the Avenue Q theme snuck up and surprised the audience booming through the theatre to the last bittersweet note sung in “For Now”, the musical had me smiling like a child watching Sesame Street the whole way through. The entire show is composed of a dynamic of ridiculous humor and overwhelming cuteness, which it executes perfectly.

The show is about several problems faced by the residents of a NYC borough “Avenue Q” (located far outside Alphabet City I assume). Princeton, the show’s lead, is a fresh move-in from college who’s realizing life isn’t easy just because your done college. He also has relationship problems with Kate Monster, his sexy furry friend. Rod, a republican/investment banker, deals with his closeted homosexuality in the worst (most self destructive) ways. The whole gang is hilarious and I encourage everyone to get a piece of this Broadway gold.

Two performances really stuck with me at my showing of Avenue Q. The first was the asian actress, who played the money troubled Christmas Eve. Her parts were hilarious and she would spring out a surprisingly beautiful voice here and there in between her shrill asian-lady parts. The second was the extremely drool-worthy Howie Michael Smith: who played the principal roles of Princeton and also Rod.

I didn’t realize it was a developing crush at first, but all my attention was on him while he was on the stage. He brought SO much energy to his parts, and truly gave Princeton and Rod the exact character persona they deserved. His talented acting and superb voice have actually reignited my deep, starry eyed children’s dream to become a Broadway actor. (Hopefully that urge will subside quickly enough)

After leaving the theatre, Smith’s role still stuck out in my head. His bulging arms and pectoral muscles did, as well. So I looked him up online. As one would expect, I’m not the first person to become obsessed with the man. I read and listened to his multiple interviews and found whatever media about him I could find.

Howie Michael Smith

He’s truly one of Broadway’s biggest talents at the time and I hope I can amount to a fraction of his accomplishment!

Personal Review: Jekyll and Hyde

Musicals are one of my favorite forms of music. I have a decent-sized collection of these works in my iTunes library, and spend a lot of time listening to the same great songs over and over again. So, obviously, I was thrilled when I accidentally stumbled upon some more great music which was completely new to me!

This musical, which I believe came to me through a “related videos” on Youtube or a “users have also purchased” on iTunes, is called Jekyll & Hyde by Frank Wildhorn. You may have heard the name; it’s based on the very popular work by a (Scottish/Swedish?) author named The Strange Case if Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The (watered down) plot centers around a man who, after giving himself an experimental medication, gives birth to a murderous alter-ego by means of extreme schizophrenia. The musical also makes a focus point on social interaction, with its various reprisals of a number “Facade”: a song about the fake-face we all present to our associates. Overall I enjoy the messages employed, and especially like the wording of this question:

“If we’re not one but two, are we evil or good? Do we walk the fine line, would we cross if we could?”

The music in Jekyll and Hyde immediately had me captivated. On iTunes I heard dark, thundering chords of the show’s prologue and immediately bought and downloaded the show. I don’t appear to be the only one. The show is not the most successful musical out there, but has earned a cult following reminiscent of the “Rocky Horror” crowd. I’m much more into dark or sad orchestral music, and saw a blend of some of my favorite show’s motifs in J&H. It seems like a mix of Webber’s love songs from Phantom of the Opera and Sondheim’s dark themes from Sweeney Todd. While that is a very generalized statement, if you give the musical a listen you’ll see what I’m talking about. So now for an objective “review”:

The Good:

The musical moods expressed in Jekyll and Hyde are auditorially fantastic. There are very few songs in the 31-track album that I don’t enjoy listening to. My favorites I’ll discuss below. These few I’ll point out are Lost in the Darkness, Facade, No One Knows Who I Am, This is the Moment, Murder, Murder, and Confrontation.

Lost in the Darkness is the opening vocal number and sung by the show’s protagonist (and antagonist, actually). It’s a lamentable tune and unveils the inner-anguish of the character. The melody is reprised in many parts of the show, and is a very good song for easy listening.

Facade immediately follows Lost in the Darkness, and is a minor-keyed choral work which discusses society’s impure ways. Connections can be made between this song and “At the End of the Day” from Les Miserables. This song also has some very good sections from a lyrical point of view: with verses such as this:

“Nearly every one you meet
Like him and her
and you and me
Pretends to be a pillar of society

A model of propriety,
sobriety,
and piety
Who shudders at the thought of notoriety.”

The overall fast and flowing pace of this song is a great listen and the orchestration has wonderful balance. It’s an excellent depiction of what I see as the main three types of songs in this work (which I’ll discuss later).

No One Knows Who I Am is a morose female aria, rich with fluff-filled similes and essentially the entire point of the song is in the title. Besides that small complaint, the eerie melody of her voice complemented by a jazz-influenced piano accompaniment make this song very enjoyable.

This is the Moment may have been written by a male Celine Dion. It’s cheesy, it’s bursting at the seams with over-emotion, and is a very good listen. Preluding the musicals “turn for the dark side”, it is an inspirational climactic piece monologued by the protagonist/protagonist about himself reaching his pinnacle point to overcome the odds recently set against him. It starts out quiet and reflective and crescendos incredibly for a gripping conclusion of the musical’s exposition (though it does not end Act I). It also is representative of the second type of song in the J&H.

Murder, Murder fits in with “Facade” in the group of fast-paced, minor-keyed, choral songs that make up a good portion of the show. Just for reference, the songs in this group are “Facade”, “Facade Reprisals 1-4″, “Good N’ Evil”, “Alive”, and “Murder, Murder”. This song moves the plot along quite nicely, outlining four or five murders that take place over a few day’s time. I suppose it makes up for it by being a long one: the song weighs in at five and a half minutes. Although there’s two or three different melodies that are cycled in these 5 1/2 minutes, it’s still enjoyable the whole way through. Similarly to “Facade”, the song shows great orchestral balance, and the fullness of the melodies makes it a fantastic song.

Confrontation is my favorite song from the musical: being the final climax and conclusion. As the title suggests it is the “confrontation” between Jekyll and his alter-ego Hyde. The song actually employs the two previously mentioned motifs and represents the third. The beginning of this song is a reprisal of “Lost in the Darkness”, and the beginning of the feud with Hyde is reminiscent in rhythm and structure to “Facade”/”Alive”. The end of the song represents the last type of music in the show: a bombastic orchestra complemented by choir ah’s, with loud and evil-sounding vocals. This third type has an extremely impressive sound and should paint a smile on the face of anyone with an appreciative ear. “Confrontation” from Jekyll and Hyde ranks in the top five songs from any musical, and definitely is up there across all genres.

These songs are great to represent the musical and should definitely be given a listening

The Bad:

This show does not appear to have been received with huge enthusiasm as it played for only four years in its Broadway run. After seeing the performance of the song “First Transformation” by David Hasselhoff in the DVD of the stage-show, I think it’s because the plot performance is not as great as the music.

Other than that, I must admit that the musicality of the music is not very advanced at all. Many of the songs consist of a very standard and basic minor scale progression: (for example) D minor, C major, Bb major, A major, D minor… If compared to shows like Sweeney Todd, Wicked, or West Side story- the ‘genius’ of the composer is pale in comparison.

That doesn’t get me down, though. I truly love listening to some of the songs and enjoy every one at the least. There is a crowd of “musical elitists” that don’t give music the light of day that they deserve if a chord structure isn’t complex enough or if it lacks originality. But the fact is I enjoy it, and would never knock it for that reason. Still, I would have to say the composers of other more complex works are deserving of more respect for their efforts.

Conclusion:

Basically it’s up to you. If you’re interested enough to give it a listen, make sure to buy the 1997 Broadway Album (definitely the best, iTunes link here).

I love the music of the musical, but as I said I am a huge fan of dark orchestral music. So, no, this music will not be everyone’s cup of tea. But if you’re anything like me, or just intelligent enough to appreciate pleasing music, you should find something great in Jekyll and Hyde.

Note: apparently there are talks of a J&H movie. That’d be fantastic! Hope you enjoyed me review and analysis. Feel free to comment! -Alegoo92

Video Game Scores

Slowly as ever working on a compilation of my favorite video game scores for my youtube channel. The thing is the selection out there isn’t that great. People argue for the sake of Final Fantasy and those japanese-ultra-dramatic soundtracks: but I see very little to nothing in them.So far I’ve finalized Kingdom Hearts, World of Warcraft, Zelda, and Halo. If anyone has any favorite pick of theirs and wants to share, please feel free to do so.-Alegoo92

Analysis: “Top 20 Favorite Film Scores”

This video was made by myself a little less than a year ago. Since then it’s been viewed over 50,000 times. My opinions on the scores selected for this video have, though, changed since the time of the videos’ making.

#20: Memoirs of a Geisha
Still not extremely fond of this score. Some people applaud it for it’s “rich ethnic textures” and whatever they can manage to see in it: but on the whole it’s very gimmicky and, while pretty in some respects, the melodies just do not captivate me.

#19: PSYCHO
A poor choice for this video. Truly a poor choice. It was added in because the score to this Hitchcock film has been praised for generations, and I myself thought the idea of the score was cool. But, just like “Memoirs of a Geisha”, I don’t find myself captivated by it and would not listen to it for enjoyment.

#18: Shrek
I consider it unjust that the score to Shrek found itself so low on the list. The score, by Harry Gregson-Williams, has many diverse themes that serve greatly in enhancing the movie. From the main title theme, the simple mix of the harp and flute make an eloquent and very appropriate sound for the gentle/medieval exposition. At the film’s climax (Fiona transforming, song: Transformation / The End) the score goes through several rapid changes which are all performed beautifully. On the whole the score is serene and majestic when appropriate, and enthralling at other times: but always pleasing.

#17: South Park Movie
The first and only South Park film to date, the creators chose to make the film a movie/musical instead of an ‘elongated episode’. The songs are actually not bad and all fit their themes very well. Some songs in the score pay homage to big-stage musical theatre, like the song La Resistance (Medley)- which parallels “One Day More” from Les Miserables very well. The music is fun to watch in the movie and enjoyable to listen to outside of the film.

#16: Red Dragon
This score, by Danny Elfman, used to be a particular favorite of mine. While I don’t listen to it nearly as often as I did when this movie was created: the quality of the score remains. In the Main Titles several motifs are used, from eerie and soft to bursting with tenacity, and the melody goes perfectly with the effects used and creates magnificent images to the listener.

#15: The Incredibles
Michael Giacchino’s music in the film “The Incredibles” definitely encourages his reputation as a skilled composer. The score has three main motifs, the bombastic and stereotypical “super-hero theme”, cutesy and fun family-movie-type, and impressively fastidious or laid back and smooth jazz. All of these can be observed in the film’s Main Theme, and are performed very well.

The Incredibles Theme, which consists of an A minor/G major/F major progression is, as I said, very stereotypical of the super hero concept: but sounds very cool and is recycled in various clever ways throughout the film.

#13: Harry Potter
When I made this movie, I had one song from John William’s score of “Harry Potter” and then several from the follow (non-Williams) movies. This ignorance is a true failing of the movie, and I apologize for that.

John Williams’ original approach to the score of Harry Potter is, in a word, magnificent. From the eerie celesta that begins the movie, the whirling chromatic strings, and lush symphonic movements; the score is simply amazing. In my opinion it is in the top 3 scores by John Williams: and definitely deserved a much higher ranking in my movie.

#12: Lord of the Rings
There are several themes in the score of Lord of the Rings. The foremost of these is the theme of the ring: a sad and dissonant strings sound in A minor and E minor, the adventurous “goin through the mountains” theme with a lot of brass, and the happy hobbit-town folk-sounding theme. The former and latter of these are all very pleasing, but the adventurous theme is not so good. It sounds like a big ‘ol batch of filler.

That’s mainly why Lord of the Rings is at the place they are. There are many fans hugely devoted to the franchise’s music, and the Return of the King album has some decent songs, but on the whole this score by Howard Shore is not that impressive.

#11: The Nightmare Before Christmas
Danny Elfman’s playful, dark but playful, and strangely addictive music to Nightmare Before Christmas is wonderful. I especially enjoy the C minor/F minor strings theme from “End Theme” and also “This is Halloween” as well as the lamentable Sally’s Song.

The score does wonders for the film, which heavily relies on music. And also the medleys in the soundtrack such as Opening Title and End Theme are in themselves great compositions to listen to.

#10: Hulk
Another Elfman piece, the score to Hulk as very sad and charismatic. While it lacks some true depth, it makes up for it heartfelt climaxes in several songs. The opening theme, a slow and sad progression of minor keys with those chords arpeggiated by a dissonant flute, is stunning to listen to and should leave a silly grin of giddiness on a devoted Elfman fan’s face.

#9: Jaws
The score to the classic movie Jaws, by John Williams, has become one of the best-known film scores known. The minor half step “shark theme” has become synonymous with oceanic threats, such as sharks, and in many cases any approaching danger.

But there is much more to this score beyond the shark’s repetitive theme. The score includes ferocious orchestral builds, strangely placed major-scale tunes lying on top of roaring minor chords to create a very sinister theme, and overall great quality of sound coming from the orchestra.

#8: Pirates of the Caribbean
No, I didn’t use the very-very-very well known theme from the first movie by Klaus Badelt in my movie. It’s so well known it wouldn’t have mattered if I put it in for the mere seconds it has time to display. Instead I used music by Hans Zimmer, which is very good and just as exciting: but not as well known.

Two pieces from the second POTC movie, The Kraken and Davy Jones, show the richness of Zimmer’s score. The Kraken is a brilliant piece, and has extreme vigor in its melodies. It’s fastidious and shows complex chord and rhythm structures with the three diverse themes from the one piece. Davy Jones’ theme is much slower, and sadder. My true respect of this theme is the use throughout the film. In the second film specifically, the theme is played on Davy Jones’ locket, his organ fugue, and many other times throughout normal conversation. One that stands out to me is at a scene when Jack Sparrow attempts to make a deal with Jones, and mentions that a certain ’soul’ is of high value: because it is in love. The expression of longing/loss on Jones’ face is complimented by the sudden and brief reprise of his theme, and shows a deeper emotion in Davy Jones than before.

#7: Jurassic Park
Another among William’s most famed scores is the Jurassic Park theme. The music in this movie is not very complex as are some of William’s others, but the music is beautiful and majestic and works well with the serenity of the Jurassic Park landscapes. I only wish that the more intense scenes had just as good music to go with them. Sadly, that is not the case.

#6: The Corpse Bride
This score is one of my favorite Danny Elfman scores to date (and Elfman dominated the list of my favorite scores to begin with). Unfortunately the small timeslot in my movie which the score played only gave me a brief time to display my two favorite songs from the score: End Credits and Into the Forest.

The End Credits, just like the opening credits and many other places in the score, has a certain majestic darkness to it. It’s celesta-played melody is simple and melancholic, and the support of strings, piano, and an ominous choir give it a whimsical (but sad) feeling of forgotten or withered beauty.

Into the Forest shows Danny Elfman’s genius (in the same place that Williams appears to have failed in Jurassic Park. The scene in the movie is where the main character encounters the demon Corpse for the first time. Horror ensues, and the music plays into it perfectly. Tremolo strings display the new and eerie presence, and the full orchestra builds and builds to several very dramatic climaxes. This is all coupled with many other elements such as scary choir “ah’s”, sweeping of the strings or woodwinds, intermittent organs, and blaring horns. They culminate in an awesomely horrifying piece.

#5: Star Wars
When you think of Star Wars, the first thing that pops into your head may very well be the music from the series. The hugely famous opening fanfare, Princess Leia’s tranquil woeful theme, the Carmina Burana-like “Duel of the Fates”, and the tragic love theme in “Across the Stars”… all of these songs and more have made up the Star Wars series.

John Williams, again, had a huge hit on his hands. Perhaps even more famous than the main theme is Darth Vader’s main theme, the Imperial March, is almost as ubiquitous than “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in pop-culture. For this reason and the fact that many of the songs are very enjoyable the score made it into the top 5 (although I find some songs to be a bit over-rated).

In particular, my favorite song from the series is “Duel of the Fates”. The choir-based song takes it’s roots from Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, and is a fantastically lush piece.

#4: Batman
The dark and lustrous score to Batman by Danny Elfman is an outstanding display of symphonic mastery and certainly the best score to go with a superhero movie. Those of you that will argue for Superman… you don’t like that score. You like that movie. That score, on the other hand, is as valuable as the lid of a garbage can.

Elfman’s score goes through many different moods throughout the film, but Batman’s charismatic minor-keyed theme is breathtakingly heroic and emotional. Songs involved in spats with the Joker are just exhilarating. The Batman Theme from the original soundtrack is eight and a half minutes long, and may as well be the movement to a classical symphony. The orchestration is perfect, and the melodies, be them violent or brooding or tragic, work to cultivate an excellent projection of the faces in the film.

#3: X-Men III
Similar to Elfman’s Batman, the score to X-Men III has an excellent minor-keyed “superhero theme” in it. It also has some very pretty and peaceful love songs in it.

The song “Phoenix Rises” from the score is another Carmina Burana-inspired one. The intense duo between the chorus and orchestra is amazing and one of my favorite film score songs.

But the musical value of this score is not as great as some others on the list. The main reason this score was placed so high (which I still rethink) is because of how well it was applied during the movie. Each scene’s music is perfectly in toon with the mood or setting, and that is something which sometimes does not occur in movies (like Gladiator or Spiderman).

Ultimately, I’d like to have given Harry Potter the #3 spot and move XMen somewhere in the middle.

#2: Beetlejuice
Another mistake. I’ll get to this bluntly: I had just downloaded the score to Beetlejuice when I made this movie. And Elfman’s Beetlejuice score is fantastic… but the movie just doesn’t allow for a “magnificent” score. The music is fun, fast, and very well orchestrated.

Still, the melodies are very one-dimensional, and this score probably deserves a place closer to the back. :-/

#1: Edward Scissorhands
Much unlike the #2 spot, Danny Elfman’s score to Edward Scissorhands most definitely deserved the spot it has been given. The music is absolutely terrific, going anywhere from bittersweet to enchanting to majestic. The score inspired a ballet for god’s sakes!

The two best songs from this score are “Main Titles” and “Grande Finale”. A celesta (or, perhaps, glockenspiel) introduces the theme and persists through the opening scenes underneath a lamenting duo between a sighing choir and mournful oboe. The Grande Finale is truly grande. The sounds created by the beautiful composition bring tears to the eyes in the climax of the song, and the resolving choir only goes on to send quakes through the listener’s emotional fiber.

Words really cannot describe how great this score is, so take a listen to it yourself.